Overview
A recurring charge is a charge schedule that automatically adds charges to a lease on the dates and frequency you choose. This way you don't have to manually record repetitive charges for the same amounts.
A recurring charge is different from a recurring rent charge — a recurring rent charge covers the base rent specified in the lease and always stays active until the lease ends or a new one replaces it, while a recurring charge covers other periodic costs and can have its own end date. Recurring charges also don't show up as part of the rent amount on the Rent Roll report, nor as part of the "next rent" charge for your tenants in their tenant portal. See A Recurring Rent Charge vs. a Recurring Charge for a full comparison.
Note: Do not use the Recurring Charge button if you are trying to schedule a rent increase. Instead, use the Recurring Rent button.
Tip: If you want other recurring charge to appear as part of the total rent amount on the Rent Roll report, add it as a line item to a recurring rent charge.
The Steps
To create a recurring charge on a lease, click Leasing> Leases from the main menu.
Find and click on the lease for which you want to add a recurring charge to.
On the lease, click on the Rent tab and then the Recurring Charge button.
Enter the required information:
Start Date: Set the date you want the recurring charge to begin.
End Date: By default, the checkbox for Repeat until the end of the lease is checked, but you can deselect this to enter an end date for the recurring charge.
Frequency: Set how often you want the charge to occur on the lease. (For example, a monthly recurring charge will be posted every month on the same day of the month as the start date.)
Account: Choose the revenue account for the charge.
Description: Enter an optional explanation for the charge. (What you enter here is what the tenant will see on their lease ledger in the tenant portal. If you leave it blank, the tenant will just see the word "Charge.")
Amount: Enter the amount for the recurring charge.
Add Line Item: Use this link to add additional charge items if needed.
Add Memo: Add an optional note for your reference when reviewing the charge later. (You will also see this in the "Memo" column in relevant reports.)
Add any relevant files (optional) and click Save.
This new recurring charge will begin adding charges to the Transactions tab of the lease when it's scheduled to start. You can add as many recurring charges as you need, and edit them later if necessary.
Note: Recurring charges do not show up as part of the "Your Next Payment" line on the tenant portal. Instead, it will show up as part of the Balance Due when the charge is posted to the lease.
Tip: Avoiding Duplicate Charges. If a charge is accidentally posted as both a recurring rent charge and a recurring charge, retain the entry listed under Recurring Rent Charge and delete the duplicate entry listed as a recurring charge.